2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic...

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(Action shots by Chris Spahr)

Youth Clinic Slideshow

Colleluori jerseys, helmets for sale

Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 10/21/08   
    The HEADstrong Foundation is offering to sell remaining helmets and jerseys worn by Hofstra University players at the 2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic. The lime green helmets are $150 while the white jerseys with lime green grim (all with the name “Colleluori” on the back) are $100.
    Different numbers are available. There are 20 of each item and sales will be made on a first-come, first-serve basis.
    These items are tax-deductible donations that will go to the foundation in its mission to raise money for blood cancer research. Thus far over $150,000 has been raised from this year’s event, named in honor of Nick “Head” Colleluori, a Ridley graduate who passed away nearly two years ago due to non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma while a student-athlete at Hofstra.
    Those interested in purchasing one of the items should e-mail the foundation at headstrongfoundation@gmail.com  and leave their contact information.

Ricci, Adams look forward to 2009

By Chris Goldberg 

Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 10/13/08

   Loyola College’s P.T. Ricci and Penn State’s Drew Adams returned home Saturday for the 2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic at Ridley High (Folsom, Pa.) with big goals for the coming spring season.
    Ricci, a senior long-stick midfielder, and Adams, a senior goalie, each played against Nick Colleluori and his Ridley Green Raiders as Central League rivals in high school.
    Saturday’s event, which drew 10,000 spectators and raised over $150,000 for blood cancer research, served as the final Fall Ball games of the year for Penn State and Loyola. Ricci and Adams both felt their homecomings were even more special knowing the fight Colleluori gave before succumbing to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma two years ago wh ile playing for Hofstra,
    “It was special for me because I played against the Colleluoris (Michael is a senior at Hofstra),” said Ricci, a first-team all-ECAC choice last year who graduated from Conestoga High. “We didn’t go (to the inaugural Colleluori Classic) last year, but we wore the (lime green) shoelaces because (senior teammate) Steve Layne knew Colleluori and the family and helped us step up the support.
    “This was a lot bigger than just our team playing in an event; look at the purpose we were playing for.”
    Ricci is happy with the Greyhounds’ position. Last year Loyola (7-7) won its first ECAC championship and bowed to Duke, 12-7, in the first round of the NCAA playoffs.
    Ricci, meanwhile, led the team with 80 groundballs while adding three goals and three assists and has been tabbed by Inside Lacrosse as a defender to watch for 2009.
    “I’m pretty happy with what happened with our team Saturday,” Ricci said. “It pretty much was the culmination of the entire fall. I’m real happy with the offense, the defense and the way we played as a team. 
    “Last year was a pretty good year. We won the ECAC and I think we surprised some teams. We didn’t surprise ourselves. Every year we expect to win the league and go to the tournament. I know we have a really good team, the players know it and the coaches know it. It’s just a question of whether we execute.” 
    Ricci, known for his smarts and speed, admits he does not possess great stick skills.
    “I think I benefit from what our face-off guys do and our wing play. I get a lot of groundballs from them and try to capitalize on what the rest of the team does. When they cause turnovers I pick up groundballs and go.

Nick Colleluori was 'One of a Kind'

By Chris Goldberg

& Willie McGonigle

Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 10/12/08

    There were and equal amount of cheers and tears when Cheryl Colleluori spoke about her son, Nick Colleluori, during the special HEADstrong Presentation late in the afternoon of Saturday’s 2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic at Ridley High.
    As most of the players from the 13 teams that participated in the event to raise money for blood cancer research sat in a circle in the field where Nick played in high school, they listened along with the large crowd to a mother who continues to fight just as she continues to grieve.
    “My son Michael said, 'Nick was one of a kind,'” she said. “He was ‘relentless.’ In whatever he did, whether it was busting someone chops, doing schoolwork or playing a game, he approached it with passion.
    “This tournament is just a small glimpse of who Nick was. It is no easier for us today than it was when we got his diagnosis.
    “We are asked all the time how we do it. To be honest, we really don’t know. All we do know is that each day that passes we are one day closer to Nick.” 
    The impact of Saturday’s Classic is staggering. Mrs. Colleluori, Chairman of the HEADstrong Foundation that runs the Colleluori Classic, said more than $150,000 will be raised from this event. An estimated 10,000 people attended the Classic, which featured 18 games over a 12-hour period.
    In two short years, the Nick Colleluori Classic has become a major Fall Ball Tournament, and an even more renowned charity event. Plans are already being made for expansion next year, though Mrs. Colleluori does not want to change the venue away from Nick’s home.
    One of the more poignant comments made Saturday came from Dr. Stephen Schuster, Nick’s doctor at the University of Pennsylvania. Schuster was introduced by Cheryl Colleluori and gave his own speech during the presentation.
    “Nick and I shared something,” he said. “In his case it was better described as relentless because that word has action. I am referred to as obsessed. It sounds like a passive description, but it was quite the same.
    “We basically shared a similar trait. We get stuck on an idea and we don’t give up. We may get knocked down and we may not always win, but we don’t give up.”     

CLICK HERE FOR COMMENTS FROM OTHER EVENT ORGANIZERS AND KEY FIGURES

Hofstra gives 'Nick Colleluori effort'

By Chris Goldberg

Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 10/11/08

    The Hofstra lacrosse tam was decked out in lime green shorts, sticks, helmets, numbers and, of course, laces, in honor of Nick Colleluori.

    And in their final game Saturday in the 2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic at Ridley High, the Pride made Nick proud.

    After a subpar effort four hours earlier against Loyola, Hofstra handily defeated national power Maryland in one of the marquee night games of the 12-hour tournament to benefit blood cancer research.

    The event, of course, was special to Hofstra because it was being played at the home field where Nick won three state championships as a member of the Ridley Raiders. Colleluori then went to Hofstra and was a popular member of the lacrosse team before being diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

    Colleluori passed away on Nov. 28, 2006 at the age of 21, but his dream of helping raise awareness and finding a cure for blood cancer spawned the HEADstrong Foundation. Saturday, the event attracted an estimated 10,000 people and will raise more than $200,000 for blood cancer research.

    The foundation has adopted the lime green color to signify Nick’s fight. Last season the sales of lime green laces helped raise over $25,000; for Hofstra, the color means even more.

    “Nick means so much to this team and we went out there truly inspired by him and what he had brought to this program,” said Pride junior long-stick midfielder Joe Caven, a Pennsbury graduate “We definitely tried to go out there and lay it all on the line.

    “Although he is not here, he is truly remembered. The lime green doesn’t go far away even when we’re off the field. A lot of guys wear lime green shorts around campus and we definitely live through him, still.”

    Last year the Pride all wore jerseys with No. 27, Nick’s playing number. This year their jerseys all said C-O-L-L-E-L-U-O-R-I on the back.

    "We just want him to be with us,” Caven said. “What he meant to the program we’ll never forget. It’s a little token to keep him in our minds and make sure we’re doing he right thing.

    Hofstra coach Seth Tierney, who has been credited for his heavy support for the Classic even though he never got to coach Nick, was emotional after the final game.

    “Today, I asked for one thing: a 'Nick Colleluori effort.' We did not get it in the middle game (against Loyola). I got it in the last game.

    “And that’s what it was all about. It had nothing to do about winning or losing. It was for Nick and to play like he played every time he stepped on this field.

    “And we challenged the guys. We got our feelings hurt a little in the second game and then we came back and played relentless.”

    Tierney said Hofstra’s program has been shaped by Nick Colleluori.

    “Nick had a huge impact on our program,” he said. “I never got to coach him, but I met him five or six times and he inspired him. I was taken aback by everything and everybody’s feelings towards him.”

Widener sees Nick's dream fulfilled

By Chris Goldberg

Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 10/11/08

    It was Nick Colleluori’s dream to help raise awareness and money so others who had blood cancer like he did could have a better chance to recover.

    Saturday at the 2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic at Ridley High, 13 men’s lacrosse teams got the chance to see his dream fulfilled up close and personal.

    Each of the teams was assigned an ‘Honorary Captain,” someone connected to their school who was recovering from blood cancer. For Widener, the team hero was David Wolovitz, who has been in remission for several years and delivered a rousing pep talk to the Pride before their two games.

    Our (Honorary Captain) spoke to us and to see him smile…I was so happy to see him tell his story,” said Widener junior defender a nd Ridley grad Nick Politarhos, after his team split its two games against Division I Bellarmine (Ky.) and local rival Haverford College. “He had cancer and they said he had three years to live, but because of a benefit like this to raise money, he is in remission and has been living five years longer than they said he would. Just to hear that is awesome.”

    Wolovitz graduated from Widener in the 1960s when it was know as Pennsylvania Military College.

    Saturday's event was orgaized by the HEADstrong Foundation, an idea first developed by Ridley High grad and Hofstra student-athlete Nick Colleluori during his fight against non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Nick passed away on Nov. 28, 2006 after a 14-month fight.   

    “It means a lot playing here, at Ridley,” said Politarhos, a key member of the Pride’s four-time defending Middle Atlantic Conference champions. “We’re coming home – not like we’re far – seeing everyone you haven’t seen in a while. It’s a great cause and I’m glad they’re having it here.”

    Politarhos is one of six Widener players who went to Ridley. One of those, junior midfielder Cory Malampy, who grew up with Nick, had many emotions.

   “For me it’s a very personal level to come back and play because I knew Nick for many years,” he said. “To be able to come back and honor him is a great thing.”

   Said Widener coach Jamie Lockard: “This is a great day. It (The Classic) has already taken off in its second year. It’s pretty neat to be a part of it.

   “It raises so much awareness. I’m on the (HEADstrong) website, and I’m reading about the cancer and what it does to you. I had no knowledge about (this cancer) until a year and a half ago when I learned about this (foundation). Then, you incorporate it into a sport like this with so many young people, and I think it’s a great thing.” (CONTINUED)

Coaches happy with how teams performed at Classic

By Chris Goldberg

Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 10/11/08

    The 2nd annual Nick Colleluori Classic not only has become of the more popular and successful fund-raising events for cancer, it also attracted 13 colleges in one of the largest Fall Ball tournaments of the season.

    Little emphasis was placed on the scores of Saturday's games – which began at 9 a.m. and run until 9 p.m. - but coaches did find plenty of positives as they close the Fall season and begin to look at the coming spring campaign.

     Penn's Brian Voelker: "We got everybody in and I thought we did some good things and some things that weren’t so great. Some of the young guys played well in the Bellarmine game and then again in the Penn State game. Hofstra kind of got after us in the first half. It was great to play three different games and to see how we can improve."

    Voelker will be armed with many key ret urnees, including last year's freshmen sensations, Al Kohart and Corey Winkoff. Voelker said his Quakers have hopes of competing for the Ivy League title this spring.

    “I think we all have big plans at this time of year," Voelker said. "We think we’re good and think we can make some noise in the Ivy League. But we’ve got to play. We’ve got to get guys to step up and get some leaders."   

     Villanova's Michael Corrado: "We had three competitive games, and everyone ‘s gotten an opportunity to play. We’ll go back this week and watch some films. We have one more weekend; next week we play Siena and Binghamton at Binghamton."

    St. Joseph’s Pat Cullinan: “I thought we did very well against Cabrini and Villanova and we got to do our (player) evaluations. We used some different combinations. We had a great game against Loyola, other than an 8-minute lapse it was a pretty competitive game. Overall, I am really happy about the day and what we were able to accomplish.”

    Lehigh’s Kevin Cassese: “As far as our team I’m extremely pleased; the guys played hard. That was our goal. We don’t care about any scores. We want the same intensity from the first whistle to the last.

    “In general, it’s an exciting time to be a Mountain Hawk. We’re trying to improve on a 6-9 record and get over the hunp and go back to the Patriot League championships.

    Cassese, a former Duke standout in his second year, is one of the youngest coaches in Division I. But he has high goals.

    “Well, honestly, I’m an impatient guy,” he said. “I’m a young guy but an impatient guy. If we can do it this year, that would be to my liking. (CONTINUED)

More than 7,000 expected for 2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic
“It is more than just a fall tournament; it is an opportunity to honor Nick, to raise money for a great cause, and to help all of us keep things in perspective. The dramatic growth of this event is no surprise to us.” – Haverford College coach Mike Murphy

By Chris Goldberg

Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 10/9/08

    Cheryl Colleluori still has trouble holding back her grief when talking about her son, Nick, and how he lived during his fight against blood cancer.

    “We want people to know their life can change on a dime, at a moment’s notice,” she said. “We’re still reeling. Did this really occur? How did it happen?

    “It isn’t supposed to happen to a 21-year-old role model. This is the kid you want to be like. He did all the right things. We need to do our part to end this.

    “I can’t rest until I do everything I can.”

    Before Nick “Head” Colleluori died of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in November of 2006, he had a dream of helping to cur e blood cancer. Thanks to the HEADstrong Foundation, driven by Nick’s zest to live even in the darkest of times, his dream is at least a little closer to reality.
    Saturday at Ridley High, where Nick Colleluori was a standout lacrosse player, 13 college  teams from Philadelphia and beyond will participate in the 2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic.
    The event, a hit last year in its inaugural showing when 5,000 attended, is expected to draw well over 7,000 people and raise more than $200,000 for blood cancer research.

    The games begin at 9 a.m. and run until 9 p.m. on two fields at the Ridley Athletic Complex. A special clinic will be run for youth players at 1 p.m. and the complex will be filled with vendors and activities for kids all day. Admission is $10.

    The purpose of the event, says Cheryl Colleluori, the Foundation President, is to promote cancer awareness and to help continue a fight that Nick made for 14 months after being diagnosed while attending Hofstra University as a student-athlete.

    “If peop le can just take a piece of him that day, the world will be that much better,” said Cheryl.

    The statistics on blood cancer - leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma - are staggering. An estimated 138,530 people in the U.S. will be diagnosed in 2008, according to the foundation. These cancers will cause 52,910 deaths in the U.S. this year; leukemia causes more deaths than any other cancer among children and young adults under the age of 20.

    The tourney field includes Philly Division I schools Penn, Villanova and St. Joseph’s and Philly Division III teams Widener, Haverford College and Cabrini. Also from the region are Penn State, Lehigh and Princeton as well as Hofstra, Maryland, Bellarmine and Loyola.

    The games will last about 50 minutes and more than 100 players from the Philadelphia area - including Nick's brother, Hofstra senior Michael Colleluori - dot the rosters of the 13 teams. It will be indeed be a day that Nick Colleluori, known as a great competitor who loved people and lacrosse, would have enjoyed. (CONTINUE)

Peterson thankful to fulfill fallen friend's dream

By Chris Goldberg
Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 10/8/08
    Maybe no one outside of the Colleluori family can appreciate the importance of Saturday’s 2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic at Ridley High more than K.C. Peterson.
    Peterson, like Nick Colleluori, was diagnosed with blood cancer (b-cell lymphoma) while playing college lacrosse. Peterson’s diagnosis occurred during the summer heading into his junior season at Haverford College three years ago.

  Peterson, like Nick Colleluori, was diagnosed with blood cancer (b-cell lymphoma) while playing college lacrosse. Peterson’s diagnosis occurred during the summer heading into his junior season at Haverford College three years ago.

    It was just a brief time later that Colleluori was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma while playing at Hofstra University. The two lacrosse players never met, but, thanks to the telephone and cell phone texting, they became good friends that went through the painful rigors of chemotherapy and radiation treatments together.

    Their stories took very different paths, however. Peterson, whose cancer was localized (in his femur), made a swift recovery after he luckily found it early due to a freak lacrosse injury. In fact, Peterson made it back to play in his junior year and then became an All-American as a senior and has a new job as a financial analyst in New York City.

    Colleluori, meanwhile, did not make the same recovery from a deadly cancer that was not localized and continued to spread. Despite a monumental fight, he succumbed to his disease on Nov. 28, 2006.

    Less than two years later, Peterson still thinks about his ordeal and how lucky he is to be in remission. Mostly, he feels honored to live on to help spread the word on cancer awareness in the memory of Nick “Head” Colleluori, whose determination and grit served as the motivation for the HEADstrong Foundation and a tournament that has already raised over $200,000 for blood cancer research.

    Saturday’s Classic will feature 13 teams and run from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Ridley in Folsom, Pa. Admission is $10 and more than 7,000 people are expected.

    “I took my treatments as an outpatient, but Nick had to stay in the hospital and he was hooked up to a monitor all the time,” said Peterson, 23, who will attend the Classic Saturday as the Honorary Captain for Haverford. “I was so sick to hear that he had passed away.

    “I felt so fortunate (to recover), but I also felt such a heavy heart. It reminded me of a quote: ‘Cancer never chooses.’ You can be 70 and have cancer, or you can be 3 and have cancer. It doesn’t choose.

    “Unfortunately, it took a good person with Nick.

    “But I also remember him saying how his mom (Cheryl) felt better because he was going to devote himself to kids with cancer. After his junior year, with all his chemo and radiation, he talked about getting better, and he said what his goals were. (CONTINUE)

Note: This is the third of a series of previews leading to Saturday's Classic

Coaches ready their teams for Colleluori Classic

By Chris Goldberg

Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 10/7/08

    Hofstra coach Seth Tierney may have coined the perfect phrase when he described how he hopes his team will perform Saturday at the 2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic at Ridley High.

    “We are looking to go out and play with ‘Nick Colleluori effort,’ ” said Tierney. “The reason for this event is to keep Nick’s spirit alive and continue to raise support for cancer awareness.”

    Tierney and his Pride will play three games – against Loyola, Penn and Maryland – in a tourney that will feature 13 teams from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. The Classic, expected to raise over $200,000 for blood cancer research, is being played in honor of former Hofstra player and Ridley graduate Nick Colleluori, who died Nov. 28, 2006, after a 14-month fight against non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

    “The guys are working hard,” Tierney said. ‘They know what this event means to our team.”

    Tierney never coached Colleluori. But the moment he accepted the head coaching job there in the summer of 2006, his first move was to speak to Nick Colleluori - who at that time was fighting for his life.

    “My first call when I got the job at Hofstra was to Nick,” said Tierney, who had been an assistant at Johns Hopkins. “There was an immediate attraction. I got to meet him five or six times, and he was a special person.”

    Nick’s legend lives on at Hofstra. His younger brother, Michael Colleluori, is a senior and one of the team’s top returning scorers.

    “It’s been wonderful having Michael here,” Tierney said. “We have a locker for Nick next to Michael’s locker, and he certainly reminds us all of Nick and the type of person he was.”

    Tierney said the Nick Colleluori Classic - expected to draw a crowd of over 7,000 - resonates in all communities.

    “Events like this give people awareness of the impact of cancer on the world,” he said. “We are hoping that this is a leapfrog for helping get HEADstrong to another level so we can help other families going through this.” (CONTINUE)

Note: This is the second of a series of previews leading to Saturday’s Classic

Cabrini gears for 2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic

By Chris Goldberg

Phillylacrosse.com, posted 10/6/08

    Cabrini College junior attacker Casey Grugan says Nick Colleluori continues to be an inspiration to those who played with him at Ridley High.

    “I remember how long he fought and how hard he fought,” said Grugan, a United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association third-team Division III All-American last year. “It was unbelievable how hard he worked.

    “It’s a shame that something that bad can happen to such a good person. It makes you want to fight that mu ch ha rder.”

    On Saturday, Grugan and the Cavaliers will get the chance to honor the memory of a man whose fight against non-Hodgkin's lymphoma has led to a foundation and lacrosse tournament that has captured the imagination of the entire lacrosse world.

    From 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday at the Ridley High Athletic Complex in Folsom, Pa., 13 Division I and III teams will play in the 2nd Annual Nick Colleluori Classic. Over 7,000 people are expected to attend a special Fall Ball tournament that has already helped the HEADstrong Foundation raise over $200,000 for blood cancer research. Admission is $10.

    Nick was a standout lacrosse player at Ridley who was diagnosed with lymphoma as a freshman playing at Hofstra three years ago. Nicknamed “Head,” Colleluori himself created the idea of the HEADstrong Foundation as part of his dream to raise awareness and, ultimately, to cure blood cancer.

    His fight to live may have ended after 14 months when he died on Nov. 28, 2006, but his cause has grown at a rate perhaps even he would not have predicted.

    Nick’s mother, Cheryl Colleluori, the Foundation President, said the goal is to raise $250,000 at this year’s Classic. She noted that the tournament will be manned by 150 volunteers.

    “It’s just an honor to play for his name and go back to Ridley High,” said Cabrini senior midfielder Pat Grenier, also a Ridley grad. “He (Nick) was the captain my junior year and he treated every practice like it was a state championship game.” (CONTINUE) 

CLICK HERE TO SEE LIST OF PHILLY PLAYERS COMPETING IN NICK COLLELUORI CLASSIC